"In this book, Whybrow's analysis combines careful reflection on the roots of American culture as a laissez-faire, competitive, free-market economy with an exploration of the nation's migrant temperament and its role in the creation of our ambitious, restless society. He sheds critical light on the dangerous misfit emerging between our consumer-driven culture and the brain systems that evolved to deal with privation 200,000 years ago. Absent any controls - cultural or economic constraints - we are easily hooked on our acquisitive pleasure-seeking behaviors. Whybrow shows how human biology is ill equipped to cope with the demands of the 24/7, global, information-saturated, rapid fire culture we not only have created but also have come to crave.".

"Drawing on scientific case studies and colorful portraits, American Mania presents a novel vantage point from which to understand the most pressing social and medical issues of our time, and it offers readers an informed approach to addressing these problems in their individual lives."--BOOK JACKET.